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iRiver Story

In a wager with the Earl of Fenmore, young Anthony Hamilton gambles away both his estate—and his sister, Diana, who is obliged to move to Fenmore Park to act as a governess to the Earl's twin nephews, and as a companion to Lady Fenmore, the Earl's mother. But his lordship finds more to Diana than he’d expected…

Regency Romance by Alissa Baxter; originally published by Regency House

Miss Diana Hamilton glanced up from her embroidery, her
brows raised in surprise. “You did what?” she exclaimed.

The young man standing before her shifted his feet, and said
defensively, “I could not help it, Diana, indeed I could not.”

“You could not help wagering our home?”

The young man cleared his throat. “‘Twas not merely our
home, I’m afraid.”

“What do you mean—not merely our home?” Diana said, laying
her embroidery to one side, and fixing her brother with a stern look.

“You were part of the wager, Di,” he said, flushing. “I am
sorry, but Fenmore insisted upon it, and I....”

“You were in your cups, no doubt, Anthony,” Diana said
coldly.

“Indeed I was!” Anthony said, seizing upon this as a
reasonable excuse.

“But why would Lord Fenmore wish to marry me?”

“Er—it is not quite that, Diana. The thing is—Lord Fenmore
is not the marrying kind, I would say. You see, his sister and her husband died
two years ago in a carriage accident, and he was left the guardian of their
twin boys. Their—their tutor is, at present, recuperating from scarlet fever—it
was a severe attack, I believe—and Fenmore does not wish to employ a new tutor
to take his place. So Fenmore suggested that you act as the boys’ governess
until their tutor has recovered...”

Diana stared speechlessly at her brother for a long moment.
Finally, recovering the use of her voice, she said, “Act as their governess?
What ever gave Lord Fenmore the impression that I would be an appropriate
governess?”

“Fenmore said that you appeared to be an uncommonly well
educated female when he stayed here last year.”

“But I barely spoke to him when he was here—in fact I
received the distinct impression that he considered me amusing in some kind of
diabolical way.”

“He told me that your disapproving air quite cowed him, and
that he thought your quelling gaze would have a marvellous effect on his
ten-year-old nephews—apparently they are—er—rather difficult to handle.”

“But Fenmore will be doing you a favour, Di—he is offering
you his home!”

“It was kind, indeed, of his lordship to take me into
consideration,” Diana said silkily.

Anthony nodded his head enthusiastically. “I knew that you
would see sense, my dear. As I told Fenmore, you’re a most sensible girl.”

“Your love of gambling, Tony, has led us to this downfall!
How could you have been so irresponsible, so heedless as to gamble Aldridge
away? And how can you believe that I—I would wish to live in the same house as
a man without honour or a sense of responsibility? The Earl should have seen
that you were in your cups and refrained from fleecing you. Especially as he is
as rich as Golden Ball himself!”

Tony stared down at his boots, shamefaced. “The Earl did not
propose the wager, Diana. I did.”

“That does not make any difference, Tony! The Earl should
not have accepted it.”

Tony continued to stare at his boots, wondering if he should
enlighten his sister as to what had really happened the previous evening.
Finally, deciding that it would in all probability soften her attitude towards
the Earl, which could only be to her benefit, he said, “I have not fully
explained what happened, Diana. Fenmore was very reluctant to take me up on the
wager. However, I was a bit on the go, and when I said that I would transfer
the wager to Marcus Bateman who was watching the play and seemed very agreeable
to it...”

“Bateman!” Diana exclaimed. “Why he is the biggest libertine
in all London!”

“Yes, well—the Earl could see that there was no moving me so
he agreed to the wager. He then asked me what you would do if I lost to him as
he is aware that your dowry is small...” He looked anxiously at his sister.
“You must believe me, Diana, that until that moment I had completely forgotten
about you—bosky you know! Otherwise, I would not have staked Aldridge, I swear
I would not have! But, one cannot draw back from a wager once placed, of
course, so I told the Earl that although Aldridge was your home, you could
perhaps move to Berkshire and live with Marianne...”

Diana stared at him in distress. “Live with Marianne! Oh no,
Tony! You must know how that would be!”

“Yes—well, I know that you have never cared for Edward—can’t
abide the fellow myself. Prosiest bore imaginable. Don’t know why Marianne
married him.” He shook his head mournfully. “I said as much to Fenmore, and
that is when he made his proposal...”

“And what do you plan to do with yourself, now?”

Anthony’s face brightened. “I’ve always had it in mind to
buy myself a pair of colours, and considering what is happening on the
Continent at the moment, it is a perfect time to enlist. And without Aldridge
to worry about, I’ll be free to do what I want to.” He shrugged his shoulders.
“You know as well as I, Diana, that the estate is more a hindrance to us than
anything else.”

Diana studied her brother soberly. “Nevertheless, Tony, it
is my home, and I have been doing everything in my power to keep things
running. You ought to have thought of me before gambling away everything that I
hold dear. You may detest Aldridge, but I have always been perfectly content
here.”

Anthony frowned. “I never could understand why you enjoyed
living here, Di, with only Cousin Rosalind for company. Why—it’s not healthy to
stay in a backwater like this! The curst place is depressing—that’s what it is,
depressing,” he said, shuddering. “The only good thing about Aldridge is the
hunting that’s to be had here. You’ll soon see, my dear, that I have done you a
favour! Indeed, you will.”

“What does Lord Fenmore propose to do with the estate?”

“I think he has it in mind to turn it into a hunting box.
Great gun is Fenmore! Do you know that he fought in the Peninsula? He says that
he believes that the army will be the very thing for me. He is generous to a
fault, Di. He—he proposed that if I lost the wager, that the cost of an army
commission should come out of the Estate... And when he suggested this
governess post for you, Di, I saw it as the mark of Providence.”

“Both Aldridge and I taken off your hands, with a minimum of
fuss.”

“Precisely, my dear. Precisely. A stroke of good fortune, if
ever there was one.”

Diana sighed. “Well, I suppose there’s nothing much to be
done.”

Anthony studied his sister a trifle anxiously. “Fenmore is
coming to call on us tomorrow morning.”

Diana raised her brows. “Is he? Well, it is a vast pity that
I will not be at home to receive him then. I have arranged to visit Mrs. Finckley
tomorrow morning.”

“But you must be at home to receive him, Diana! He wants to
know when you will be able to take up your post at Fenmore Park.”

“He will have to wait until the afternoon to see me then,
Tony. I am not wholly at his lordship’s disposal. Well not yet,” she added a
trifle bitterly, as she stood up and, picking up her embroidery, left the room.

Diana hurried up the stairs to the Green Parlour, where her
cousin was reclining on a day bed. Rosalind looked up with surprise when Diana
entered the room, with something less than her usual composure. “What is it, my
dear?” she asked, anxiously surveying Diana’s pale face.

Diana sighed. “You will not believe what Anthony has done, Rosa.”
She paused for a moment, and shook her head, before continuing, “He staked
Aldridge and me in a wager—and lost! To Lord Fenmore!”

“He did what? Oh my dear, I am so sorry! How could he have
done such a thing? The foolish boy.” A moment later, the anxious expression on
Rosalind’s round, pleasant face lifted however, as she said, “My dear—there are
worse things in life than having to marry Lord Fenmore. Lady Sefton, in her
last letter to me, informed me that he is considered one of the most eligible
bachelors on the Marriage Mart.”

“Lord Fenmore does not wish to marry me, Rosa—he wants me to
go to Fenmore Park to act as a governess to his orphaned nephews.”

Rosalind sat up from the daybed with a start. “A—a
governess!” she spluttered. “What a preposterous idea! What was your brother
thinking of?”

“Tony thinks it is a marvellous, idea, Rosa. He views it as Providence.
Both Aldridge and I have been taken off his hands, and he can now buy himself a
pair of colours.”

Rosalind sank back onto the daybed again, a hand held to her
forehead. “My dear child. I cannot believe it. Your poor mama would turn in her
grave if she knew of this!”

Diana sat down beside her cousin, and stared meditatively
ahead of her. “Lord Fenmore is calling on me tomorrow, Rosa. I have informed
Tony that he will have to wait until the afternoon to see me because I am
visiting Mrs. Finckley tomorrow morning. You will have to entertain his
lordship in my absence.”

“I will be sure to give him a piece of my mind, my dear!”
Rosalind’s eyes sparkled militantly as she contemplated the upcoming interview.
She looked across at Diana, after a moment, and sighed. Although her cousin was
four-and-twenty, and was, in the eyes of the world, on the shelf, Rosalind had
entertained hopes that she might yet make a respectable marriage. Though not
conventionally pretty, Diana’s features were very pleasing. Dark brown hair
curled becomingly around her heart-shaped face, and her large grey eyes looked
out on the world with a natural reserve that was not unattractive, Rosalind
thought. Although Diana had not “taken” when she had been presented in London,
a few discerning gentlemen had made her the object of their attentions. Her
cousin, however, had not developed a serious tendre for any of them and had
returned home, perfectly content to invest her time and energy in nursing her
sick mama, who had since died, and running Aldridge. And now her dear cousin
was doomed to the life of a governess, Rosalind reflected unhappily. The last
thing she would have chosen for her!

Diana rose from her chair, and murmured. “I have the
headache, Rosa, so if you will excuse me, I think I will retire to bed.”

“Of course, my dear. You have suffered something of a
shock.”

Diana left the room and walked up the stairs to her
bedchamber, her thoughts in a whirl. Tomorrow, she felt sure, was going to
prove something of a trial and she would need all her wits about her if she
were going to hold her own against Julian Tavistock, Eighth Earl of Fenmore,
and, in her opinion, the most provoking man in England! As she prepared herself
for bed, a vague idea came into her mind and she fell asleep pondering it.
There was a slight chance that it might work, she thought drowsily. A very
slight chance...

The next morning, Diana dressed in a gown that her maid,
Ellen, deemed to be most unsuitable for a visit to the Vicar’s wife, but she
valiantly held her tongue when her usually sober mistress informed her that she
wished to wear the pink gown that she had worn as a débutante, six years ago.
Ellen could not help remonstrating a little, however, when Diana requested her
maid to dress her hair in a mass of curls instead of the discreet hairstyle she
normally favoured. “But, Miss Diana, you will look distinctly odd, with your
hair worn in that style. And that gown—it does not suit you, indeed it does
not!”

Diana smiled enigmatically. “Does it not make me look more
youthful, Ellen?”

“Miss Diana, forgive me for saying so, but you look
like—a—a, well, like a pink meringue!”

“Good!” Diana said, smiling again. Looking around her
bedchamber, she said thoughtfully, “Now, I think I will wear my pink flowered
bonnet—the one with the cherries and pink ostrich feathers that dear Aunt
Sylvia gave me last year, and which I haven’t worn as yet. Oh—and tie a few
knots of purple ribbon onto the bonnet as well, Ellen.”

This, however, was too much for her faithful maid to bear. “Oh,
no, no, no, Miss Diana! You cannot go into public dressed like that. You will
look a sight! Think of your reputation.” Her eyes widened. “Think of my
reputation!”

Diana shook her head. “I am afraid, Ellen, that both our
reputations will have to suffer a little, but rest assured I know exactly what
I’m doing. Now, the only thing that I am lacking is my fringed shawl. Thank
you, Ellen,” she murmured when her maid passed it to her with a wooden
expression on her face. “Perfect! I shall be back this afternoon,” she
continued, hurrying from the room.

Mrs. Finckley was surprised when Diana, who was usually very
elegant in her dress, was shown into her drawing room later that morning, but
she was too well bred to show her amazement at her young friend’s unwonted
departure from good taste.

Noticing that Mrs. Finckley was studiously avoiding
commenting on her rather startling appearance, Diana said with a rueful
chuckle, “I can assure you, dear Mrs. Finckley, that I am not a candidate for
Bedlam, as you may be thinking. I have a particular reason for dressing like
this, this morning.”

Mrs. Finckley’s eyes widened when Diana explained how
Anthony had wagered their home away. She looked even more aghast when Diana
told her that she had been part of the wager, and that Lord Fenmore wanted her
to act as a governess to his two nephews.

“You, as a governess, my dear? I cannot believe it!”

“Hmmm—neither could I. I don’t think that Lord Fenmore will
want me to take his nephews in charge, however, if I look like a frivolous
young lady... Do you?”

Mrs. Finckley’s brow creased in a worried frown. “What will
you do if Lord Fenmore decides against engaging you as a governess, Diana? You
will no longer have your own home... Oh, my dear, this is terrible!”

“My sister, Lady Arlington, will, I am sure, be pleased to
welcome me into her home. She has suggested as much to me in the past. She has
a large family, and I could be of some help to her...”

“Well, that is indeed a relief—although you have been
accustomed to being mistress of your own home for many years, and it will not
be easy to adjust to your change in circumstances. You have my deepest
sympathy, my dear.”

Diana smiled at the older lady who had given her so much
support since Diana’s mother had died five years previously. “Thank you, Mrs. Finckley.
Your concern is much appreciated.” She sighed. “I must return to Aldridge, now.
Lord Fenmore will be waiting.”

Diana took her leave of her hostess, and hurried from the
room. The drive home seemed to pass in a blink of an eye, and within a matter
of minutes, a groom was letting down the steps for her to alight from the
carriage. She walked briskly up the steps to the front door of the Manor house,
which was opened by Harris, the old family retainer. He informed her in an
impassive voice that Lord Fenmore was awaiting her in the Drawing Room, but
that he was in no doubt that his lordship would not mind waiting a few minutes
longer while Miss Diana changed her dress.

Diana smiled serenely up at Harris. “I don’t think there is
any need for me to change my attire, Harris. I will see Lord Fenmore now...”

“But, Miss Diana!” he expostulated. He subsided however when
he saw the determined look on his young mistress’s face. Shaking his head, he
led the way to the Drawing Room, where he announced her name in an emotionless
voice before closing the door behind her.

Diana advanced a few steps into the room, and her hands
fluttered to her chest as her eyes passed from her goggling cousin to Lord Fenmore,
who was seated beside her. He rose to his feet when Diana came towards him, and
bowed over her outstretched hand.

“Oh, Lord Fenmore, what a pleasure, and indeed an honour, it
is to see you again!” Diana said in a breathy little voice. “Why, when dear
Anthony told me that you wished to see me, I was quite overwhelmed. Such an honour,”
she said again, bestowing a dazzling smile on his lordship.

An expression of acute distaste crossed the handsome features
of Lord Fenmore as he surveyed the woman standing in front of him. But he
recovered himself sufficiently to murmur, “Miss Hamilton—the pleasure is all
mine.” He waited for her to be seated, before sitting down on the sofa across
from her.

Diana frowned slightly at Rosalind, who was still gaping at
her, before turning her attention to her guest once again. She batted her
eyelashes at him. “Lord Fenmore—my brother has informed me that you have won
our home—and me—in a wager! Why my heart is all in a flutter. Indeed, it is the
most romantical thing that I have ever heard!”

Lord Fenmore made no response, and Diana felt rather
uncomfortable as he subjected her to a thorough appraisal. She felt even more
uncomfortable when, blue eyes gleaming, he murmured, “Bravo, my dear. You are
most convincing.”

Diana looked sharply at him. The arrogant devil appeared to
be laughing at her. Laughing at her! She pinned a smile on her face. “Lord Fenmore
-” she stopped, at a loss for words. The Earl, she realised, had seen right
through her pretences, and she felt at a terrible disadvantage, seated before
him in all her pink finery.

“My dear Miss Hamilton, I am relieved that the prospect of
acting as governess to my nephews has sent you into raptures,” Lord Fenmore
said blandly. “Your brother informed me that you would probably need some
persuasion, but this is obviously not necessary. When will you be able to take
up your position?”

Diana’s eyes narrowed. “I am surprised, my lord, that you
think that I will be an appropriate governess for your nephews. I have no
experience in that field.”

“Your brother informed me that you are a bluestocking, Miss
Hamilton...”

“Did he indeed?” Diana said smartly.

Lord Fenmore looked lazily across at her. “He did, and I can
see that your quelling eye will have a remarkable effect on my nephews. It is
delightfully incongruous with your appearance, I might add,” he murmured, lips
twitching.

Diana felt the colour creeping up into her face, and wished
with all her heart that she had not attempted such a foolish pretence. “Lord Fenmore,
I would prefer to move to Berkshire and live with my sister, than take up a
position as a governess in your household. Will you not release me from this
wager?”

The Earl studied her thoughtfully. “I think that you are under
a misapprehension about the nature of the post, Miss Hamilton. My mother’s
companion, a distant cousin of hers, has recently left Fenmore Park to attend
to her ailing mother. Miss Wilson was not the most intelligent of females, and
I am sure that my mother will be delighted to have you in Miss Wilson’s stead.
You will be a companion to my mother, and I only request that you act as my
nephews’ governess until their tutor has recovered his health and can return to
Fenmore Park. Thus your position in my household will be chiefly that of a
companion.”

Diana lifted startled eyes to his face. “Oh—I had not realised...”

“My nephews are running wild at present, and I think you
will be a good influence on them, Miss Hamilton... Will you not fulfil the
conditions of your brother’s wager?”

Diana looked away from the Earl. By asking her to fulfil the
terms of the wager, the Earl had reminded her that Tony’s pride was at stake.
If she refused to come to Fenmore Park, Tony would feel that he had not
fulfilled a debt of honour, and although she did not think that her brother
deserved her consideration when he, himself, had not spared a thought for her
future, she realised that she could not, for the pride of the family name,
refuse to fulfil the conditions of the wager—especially as Tony was now able to
buy his army commission because of the Earl’s generosity. The only way that she
could be freed from this debt of honour was if the Earl agreed to release her
from the wager, and from what he had said, she gathered that he was not
inclined to do so. So raising her eyes once again to his face, she said, “I
will be able to take up my post next Monday, Lord Fenmore.”

He nodded. “I will send my coach to fetch you.”

Diana cleared her throat. “Is it possible for—that is, will
my personal maid be able to accompany me, my lord? And—and my dog, Chloe? She
is a friendly little creature and should not be any trouble...”

“Of course, Miss Hamilton.” He smiled at her. “Your arrival
at Fenmore Park will be eagerly anticipated. I am sure that you will succeed
most admirably in managing my nephews.”

“In fact, I am proving most useful to you,” Diana said
sweetly.

“You are, indeed. It was a fortunate day for my family when
I won you in that wager.” He glanced at the clock on the mantelpiece, and stood
up. “I am travelling back to London this afternoon, so I must take my leave of
you now,” he said, bowing in Rosalind’s direction. Diana stood up, and Fenmore
looked steadily at her. “I look forward to seeing you next week, Miss
Hamilton.”

Diana felt her heart quicken under his intense gaze, but she
bid him a determinedly cool farewell, before turning away from him.
Unfortunately, she caught her foot in a rent in the worn carpet, and losing her
balance, stumbled, and fell straight into Lord Fenmore’s arms. He held her for
a moment, and as she stared up into that dark, handsome face, her heart began
to beat even faster. He smiled down at her. “You should be more careful, Miss
Hamilton,” he said softly, as he set her once again on her feet. And as Diana
watched him striding from the room, she reflected that she would indeed have to
be careful in the future if she were to survive living in the same household as
the maddening Earl of Fenmore!